By Akpan Udo-Inyang
CALABAR
Cross River State Deputy Governor, Mr. Peter Odey, has lamented that the state capital, Calabar may soon be totally submerged and lost to mudslide.
The ravaging mudslide has continued to wreak havoc across parts of Cross River State, Odey stated while inspecting the latest incident at Diamond Hill, near the Calabar Jetty following continuous torrential rainfall.
While calling for urgent intervention by the federal government to avert an impending ecological disaster, Odey, described Diamond Hill disaster as a grim reminder of the state’s environmental vulnerability,
Odey said the magnitude of the destruction has surpassed the state’s capacity and requires immediate deployment of federal technical expertise and ecological resources.
The deputy governor, who directed the commissioner for works and infrastructure to immediately mobilise to the location, said the visit was aimed at carrying out a firsthand assessment of the disaster and initiating emergency measures to prevent further deterioration.
He disclosed that officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), currently in Cross River , had already visited the scene, stressing that close collaboration between the state and Federal Government would be indispensable in tackling the crisis.
“We have about 14 directors from NEMA presently in Cross River State, and I have been informed they have already inspected this site. I will be meeting with them in my office, and we may return here together because this is a challenge that requires genuine collaboration between the Cross River State Government and the Federal Government. It is beyond what any single institution can effectively handle.”
Odey, lamented that the Diamond Hill mudslide was only one among several ecological disasters triggered by recent heavy rains across the state, assuring citizens that the Governor Bassey Otu-led administration was committed to responding promptly to every affected community.
“This is certainly not the only location affected. We have received reports from several parts of Cross River State where erosion and landslides have also occurred. As a responsible government, we will do everything within our capacity to respond immediately. We cannot allow these situations to escalate into humanitarian disasters,” Odey further stated.
Expressing relief that no lives were lost despite the severity of the incident, the deputy governor nevertheless warned that the state could not continue to rely on fortune, insisting that urgent preventive measures had become imperative.
On long-term solutions, Odey revealed that the state government had already engaged environmental experts and engineering professionals to undertake technical assessments aimed at developing permanent erosion-control measures.
The deputy governor recalled that the Federal Ministry of Environment had successfully intervened in similar ecological disasters in other parts of the country through the Ecological Fund, urging the federal government vernment to extend the same support to Cross River .
